The Gilroy Mustangs will challenge the Salinas Cowboys at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (Gilroy 1.7, Salinas 2.4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Gilroy's pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They came out on top against Valley Christian by a score of 3-0. The Mustangs haven't had any issues with the Warriors recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.
Ariela Yslava
| 03/06/25 @ Valley Christian | 9 |
| 03/04/25 vs King's Academy | 13 |
| 03/01/25 vs Live Oak | 7 |
| 03/01/25 vs Wilcox | 7 |
Ariela Yslava made a big impact no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out nine over seven innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one double.
Yslava wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Dani Wilson, who scored a run and stole Two bases. while going 1-for-3. Christy Haro was another, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Salinas). Everything went their way against Carlmont on Thursday as Salinas made off with a 16-0 victory. With that win, the Cowboys brought their scoring average up to 7.4 runs per game.
Like Gilroy, Salinas also got a great game from a two-way player: Abi Jones. She struck out eight batters over 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and only one walk). Jones was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, Kelsie Domenighini was incredible, getting on base in all four of her plate appearances with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. The dominant performance also gave her a new career-high in hits (two). Another player making a difference was Sam Merillana, who went 1-for-2 with one home run and four RBI.
Salinas always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .625. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Carlmont only posted an OBP of .077.
The victory made it two in a row for Salinas and bumps their season record up to 4-1. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. As for Gilroy, the win got them back to even at 3-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Gilroy has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Salinas struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Gilroy was able to grind out a solid victory over Salinas in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, winning 9-4. Will Gilroy repeat their success, or does Salinas have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
